Dell M90 vs Dell 630
Turbo Mini Forums

I am due to have my current works M60 'upgraded' as it is out of lease shortly...

They were just going to give me a M90 with the following bumf:

1.66GHz Core 2 Duo Processor
60 GB Primary Hard Drive
2 GB RAM
8XDVD+/-RW Drive
Internal Wireless Card

But I asked about the 9-pin serial port, to which they replied it don't have one.... hmmm, not very useful then (for the obvious stuff i need a 9-pin for)...

They have given me two options - a pcmcia/serial adaptor to go with the M90, or a 630 instead of the M90...

Any thoughts? I know nothing about computers at all.... :)

pcmcia serial adapters do work well, the usb serial adapters are often a bit flakey. The spec sounds fine for what you want.

Team Racing

I am on a M90 myself, although a bit more of a monster than the one there. Bear in mind it is a heavy and large lap top, but I really like mine. I would ask to get a docking station with it. Then you get the 9 pin serial, and a lot of other ports at the same time. failing that I would go with the pcmcia adaptor.

Edited by miniminor63 on 26th Nov, 2007.

So, the M90 (forgetting about the lack of a 9-pin) is a superior machine than the 630?

I would be using it for general officey stuff, as well as Pro/E, and various engineering analysis and other processor intensive stuff. I also need a robust unit for when i'm on the road taking vehicle data...

Guess i should have mentioned this before LOL

Dont be put of due to the lack of a 9 pin serial port.

A lot of RS232 to USB converters are unreliable, but I use this one:



It comes with drivers on a CD and once installed works fine.

I've used it to communicate with my Megasquirt and program my Innovate kit.

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

I think I would choose the M90. It sure is robust, and it has a larger screen than the 630. (I have been on the dell page comparing just now) I am running some of the most prosessor demanding stuff possible on mine (oil reservoir numerical simulations), the maximal number of calculations done up to now on it is something like 4x8x270000x17000 calculations done in a little more than 3 days (all these calculations need iterations too btw :)). No crashes as of yet. Be careful getting XP though, vista is crap! My computer has a more powerfull processor than the M90 you will get though.

EDIT: My experience is that all USB to serial cables are crap, I have tried several and will not even go there anymore...

Edited by miniminor63 on 26th Nov, 2007.

Oops! sorry, my comparison was based on the D630. I do not know which letter there is before the 630 number on your, but I think it is a D, am I right?

yes - D630...

I think i'll stick to the M90, and get them to buy a PCMCIA adaptor... :)

Plus with the PCMIA when it slips of the passenger seat hen your mapping you don't run the risk of shagging the usb port when it lands on the adaptor.